1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to automated calling systems used by sales personnel and other telephone operators to place a series of telephone calls to existing or potential customers.
2. Background of the Related Art
Various computer based automated calling systems have been created to partially automate the process of calling a plurality of customers. Typically, multiple operators will be connected to a central switching device. The central switching device will automatically place telephone calls to individual customers. If a customer, rather than an answering machine/service, actually answers a telephone call, the call is then connected with an operator""s telephony device so that the operator can begin a sales call. If a customer""s answering machine or answering service answers the automatically placed telephone call, the automated calling system will hang up. Alternatively, if an answering machine or answering service answers one of the automatically placed telephone calls, the calling system may wait for the greeting to end, then play a pre-recorded message to the customer""s answering machine.
These types of automated calling systems include computer software which is designed to discriminate between calls answered by live customers, and calls answered by a customer""s answering machine/service. If the automated calling service determines that a live person has answered a call, the telephone line must be switched to a free operator who then begins the customer sales call. There is inevitably a delay period between the time that the customer answers the telephone, and the time that an operator is able to pick up the line and begin the sales call. Customers who have become familiar with these calling systems will immediately hang up their telephone if they perceive that a delay is occurring while their telephone line is switched to a sales operator. This results in missed sales opportunities.
The invention is a system and method for providing automated calling services to a telephone operator. A calling system embodying the invention is configured to automatically place a telephone call to a customer in response to an operator""s command. However, unlike prior art systems, with a system embodying the invention, the operator""s telephony device is actually connected to the telephone line while the sales call is being automatically placed so that the operator can immediately begin the sales call if a live customer answers the telephone call. If a customer""s answering service answers the telephone call, the operator can simply select the next customer on his call list, and the calling system will automatically place a telephone call to the second customer, and switch the operator""s telephony device to the second call. This ensures that the operator is online and can begin a sales call with the second customer is a live customer answers the second call.
An automated calling system embodying the invention may also be configured to play a pre-recorded message over a telephone line connected to a customer, or a customer""s answering machine/service. This could occur in at least two different situations.
In one situation, an operator could conduct a telephone call with a live customer, then inform the customer that he would like to have the customer listen to a prerecorded message. If the customer agrees, the operator can then move onto a new sales call with a second customer, and instruct the automated calling system to begin to play the pre-recorded message to the first customer. This requires that the calling system maintain the connection to the first customer""s telephone line while it plays the pre-recorded message, and simultaneously connect the operator""s telephony device to a second telephone line so that a second sales call can be placed to a second customer.
In a second scenario, if a first customer""s answering machine answers a sales call, the operator can instruct the automated calling system to play a pre-recorded message to the first customer""s answering machine while the operator moves on to a second customer. This would cause the automated calling system to connect the operator""s telephony device to a second telephone line and to automatically place a telephone call to the second customer using the second telephone line. The calling system would also simultaneously monitor the first customer""s telephone line to determine when the first customer""s answering machine message ends. Once the answering machine has completed its message, the system would play a pre-recorded message to the first customer""s answering machine over the first telephone line, and then terminate the call.
A system and method embodying the present invention allows for telephone calls to be automatically placed using a customer calling list. In addition, because the operator is on the line as each call is being placed, customers are less likely to hang up. An automated calling system embodying the invention also provides the ability to play pre-recorded messages to live customers, or customer answering machines, while the operator moves on to a new telephone call. This increases the efficiency of the operator.
Additional advantages, objects, and features of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows and in part will become apparent to those having ordinary skill in the art upon examination of the following or may be learned from practice of the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and attained as particularly pointed out in the appended claims.